As You Wish
by giftofamber
Summary: David is taking care of a "sick" Henry and reads him a new fairytale from the storybook about the Princess Regina (Buttercup) and her stable girl Emma (Wesley). Will she be forced to marry Leopold (Humperdink) or will her stable girl save the day? Starring Rumplestiltskin as the Miracle Worker. #SwanQueen Princess Bride AU.
1. Chapter 1

The sun was shining outside his window, and all Henry wanted to do was to sneak outside and find Emma. He'd already fooled his mother into letting him stay home from school with a hot water bottle, knowing full well she had important town meetings she couldn't cancel to stay home with him. He was already counting the minutes down to her departure when she dropped in on him one last time.

"Henry, your grandfather is here. He's agreed to watch you, so don't cause any problems for him, alright?" Regina knelt down to look in her son's eyes. She hated the thought of leaving Henry in anyone else's care, but it couldn't be helped, and Kathryn, who was her usual babysitter, had a prior engagement. She'd called over to Mary Margaret's apartment to talk to Emma and had gotten David instead, and well, she was desperate for a sitter.

Henry was sure that his mother had lost her mind. He looked up at his mother wide-eyed, "Rumplestiltskin?"

"Don't be silly. Your other grandfather," Regina scoffed. No matter how desperate she was, Rumplestiltskin would never come anywhere near her son without her present. David was at least mostly harmless-when his pea brain was functioning anyway.

Henry resisted the urge to hug his mother, but his eyes gave away his excitement just the same. He loved spending time with David, otherwise known as Prince Charming, almost as much as he loved spending time with Emma. He knew that his mother didn't really approve of his biological family, so he tried desperately to stay calm for her sake, "David's here?"

"Yes, and you'll be happy to know we're all out of apples," Regina put her hand on his arm, smiling a little to let him know that she was mostly joking. She moved closer as though she was going to kiss his forehead and then backed away instead. She decided not to test their already fragile relationship when Henry had a fever. "Remember, no problems. Don't strain yourself."

"Yes, mom. Thank you," Henry said, remembering his manners. He watched her leave with a wistful look on her face and less than a minute later, David walked in, holding his storybook. Henry knew every single story in the book by heart because he'd spent so long trying to discover everyone's fairytale identifies and convince Emma to break the curse over Storybrooke. She'd since broken the curse, although she wouldn't tell him how, and he'd been in a coma at the time so all he had were educated guesses as to what happened. Not that it really mattered to him, because even though the curse was broken, he still wasn't allowed to live with Emma and his mom was still the mayor and everything was pretty much the same except that Mary Margaret and David had moved in together and Ashley had finally given birth.

Scanning the room quickly, David found a chair by Henry's desk that was kid-sized, but would probably hold an adult's weight. He pulled it over so he could sit next to Henry's bed, "Hey, kid. Thought I'd come by so we could spend some quality time together."

Momentarily forgetting that he was supposed to be sick, Henry asked, "Are you going to teach me to ride horses?"

"Not today, kid. I thought we could read one of these stories together since you are so fond of them. Would you like to pick one?" David proposed as he handed the book to Henry.

Henry leafed through the book and found what appeared to be an entirely new story. He stared at the picture, which had a teenage girl who looked a lot like his mother only with long hair standing next to a horse. Was it possible new fairytales were being created now that the curse was broken? He exclaimed excitedly to David, "Look! This one wasn't here before."

"Well, I'll be…I guess that means we should read it first," David thought out loud. Fate had a funny way of making itself known, and he wasn't about to mess with it. He held up the page so that both of them could see as he began to read, "The Princess Bride. Once upon a time, there was a princess named Regina, and her favorite pastime was ordering the stable girl to do things for her, but she never called the stable girl by her first name…."

* * *

"Stable girl, saddle my horse," the princess ordered. The princess was dressed in the finest riding clothes money could buy, and her long dark hair was in a single braid down her back, tied with a beautiful blue ribbon that matched the pale blue of her riding coat.

"As you wish," said the young stable girl, the corners of her mouth turning into a smirk. Her golden curls were as wild and untamed as Regina's favorite mare. Her tank top and trousers were well-worn, but accentuated her muscular figure perfectly, at least as far as the princess was concerned. The stable girl leaned over as she put the saddle atop the horse, actively putting on a show for her audience.

"Stable girl, help me up," the princess commanded, pretending to be completely unaffected by the girl in front of her. When the stable girl uttered the same three words she always spoke-'as you wish'-the princess looked into emerald eyes and found herself momentarily lost. In that moment, as the stable girl knelt before her and held out her hands in a compliant manner, the princess Regina knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that those simple words were the stable girl's way of saying 'I love you,' and she knew in her heart that she felt the same.

* * *

Confusion enveloped Henry's features as he searched the page in front of him for answers. It was one thing to see his mother looking like a princess in his own book of fairytales. It was a whole different story to envisage his other mother in that same tale in the role of his mom's love interest. He wasn't sure how he felt. On the one hand, this was his book of fairytales; the book that had gotten him through some very confusing times and helped his mom to break the curse, so the story couldn't be all bad. On the other hand, the Evil Queen and the Savior? As a couple? That didn't make any sense. Also, where was the adventure? Was this story only about romance?

David glanced at him, sensing that Henry needed a break from the story. Quite honestly, he needed a little break as well. He stated the obvious, "Um, this seems to be a romance."

"Maybe the adventure is coming up?" Henry wondered. "Every fairytale has adventure and fighting the bad guys. But, if my mom is one of the good guys, who are the bad guys in this story?"

"I guess we're going to have to read to find out," David replied, not entirely satisfied with the answer himself. He continued on with the story however, seeing as how it had been his idea in the first place to read the book to keep Henry company.

* * *

Even as the stable girl melted into the princess' embrace, she knew that their happiness could not last, at least not yet. She had no money to provide for the princess, nor did she have the station to allow her love to hold her head high. As an orphan, there wasn't much she could do about her station, but there was a way, albeit a risky way, to make enough money that the princess would want for nothing for the rest of their days. She would sail aboard a ship to the new country, to make her fortune. She was young, strong, and hearty and could withstand the long voyage. What broke her heart was knowing that she had to make the trip alone, and the thought of being separated from her princess was almost too much to bear.

"I'll come with you," the princess pleaded. A terrible foreboding filled her heart with dread. "I'll bind my chest and cut my hair. I couldn't bear it if something happened to you."

"Nothing will happen to me - I swear it," promised the stable girl. She stared into beautiful brown eyes and just knew she could conquer the world.

"What if my mother tries to marry me off?" the princess begged, her eyes downcast. She shuddered to think of being betrothed to anyone but her love.

"Look at me, your highness. Regina, what we have is True Love. Even your mother won't go against True Love," the stable girl insisted. She reached around the back of her own neck and unhitched the clasp on her locket. Placing the locket gently in the princess' hand, she continued, "This is all I have left of my parents. Keep it as my pledge to you – I will always save you."

Clutching the locket, the princess felt tears start to fall. She forced her tears to stop and put the locket around her own neck. She put her chin up, "I can save myself. Just…come back to me."

"As you wish."


	2. Chapter 2

Sadly, the princess' premonition came to pass, or so she was led to believe. She received word that her love's ship had been captured by pirates, leaving no survivors. The princess was devastated. She locked herself in her chambers for weeks, leaving only for meals and to take care of her beloved horse, Rocinante. In spite of what she had heard, she still had a small kernel of hope in her heart when she looked into Rocinante's eyes that one day her stable girl would come gallivanting across the field in finery above her station, but as time went on, that small kernel of hope continuously diminished until she swore that she would never love again. When five years later, as she had also predicted, her mother betrothed her in marriage to Prince Leopold, the princess had lost all faith that her stable girl, her Emma, had miraculously survived and would make good on her pledge to save her. She had resigned herself to her fate.

* * *

"No! That can't be true! Emma's still alive, and I've never known my mom to go down without a fight," Henry declared. "Maybe Emma was right, and this book really is fake."

"Hold on now, young man, have you forgotten so quickly that it correctly predicted Emma breaking the curse? Or that this book is how you found your grandparents? I can't explain this story...the idea of my daughter being the True Love of the Evil Queen is positively ludicrous...but that doesn't mean the entire book is fake," David argued.

"Mom told me her mother killed her first love, who was a stable boy, not a stable girl. She would've told me if she liked girls, right?" Henry asked, suddenly not as sure as he had first felt. His mom did talk about Emma a lot, and she did look at her when she thought he wasn't paying attention, but that was just because Emma was his birth mother...or was it?

David was uncertain, "Well, Henry, that type of thing wasn't really talked about back in the Enchanted Forest, especially by the nobility. I mean, this is a new fairytale in the book, so maybe your mom's story is being rewritten since we've been living in Maine for 29 years, where everyone is more open-minded."

Instead of responding, Henry elected to continue reading the tale, "Prince Leopold introduced his betrothed to his subjects….

* * *

"Behold, the Princess Regina."

The princess descended the stairs and began to walk amongst the commoners, who immediately went to kneel before her. She blinked back tears, moved by their devotion, praying it would fill the emptiness in her heart. Though her mother and Prince Leopold assured her that she would grow to love him once they married, she knew that she was not capable of giving her heart to another. By the time her mother came to get her to return to their keep, she was relieved to be out of the spotlight.

Soon after, she rode Rocinante into the forest. Feeling nostalgic, she sported the same outfit that she had the day her love had left, save for one small exception-she had donned one of Emma's tank tops under her riding coat, one of the few items Emma had left behind when she began her journey. Regina wasn't really paying attention to how long she was riding and rode deeper into the forest than usual. She no longer recognized the landmarks and so was not unhappy that she heard voices calling to her from below. She gently tugged on the reins and gave Rocinante the signal to stop so she could identify those voices.

At first glance, they appeared to be travelers and not ones she recognized. One appeared to be a small giant-almost a contradiction in terms; his clothes coming apart at the seams. The second appeared to be a female Spaniard of low birth and quite physically fit like her Emma. The third looked to be the leader of the party based on stature and attire. The raven-haired woman wore rich colorful fabric that had yet to fade in a style that Regina did not recognize from her land. If Regina had not been so distracted, she would have seen the sword at the woman's side.

Snow recognized the princess immediately as the one chosen by the man who had made her grow up a bastard and cast a shadow on her mother's reputation. She had watched the engagement ceremony from afar, waiting for this very moment to take her revenge on Prince Leopold. She spoke glibly, "A word, my lady? We are but strangers here. Would you know if there was a village nearby?"

Answering honestly, Regina offered, "Not for miles."

"Then no one will hear you scream," Snow smiled as her comrades advanced on the princess, knocking her from her horse. With barely the hint of a scream, the princess lost consciousness from her fall. Snow gestured to Tiny to carry their prize back to their boat, but not before sending the princess's horse draped with a banner of a neighboring kingdom's crest back to the stables to distract the prince long enough for them to get away with the princess.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I just wanted to reassure my readers that Hook, Neal, and Robin Hood will most definitely NOT be in this story. The role of Inigo Montoya will be played by Jack (Jacqueline) from Jack and the Beanstalk.

* * *

The three headed to the moors with their prize where a sailboat waited, anchored to the docks.

Getting on the boat, Tiny laid Regina gently in a corner before asking Snow, "Snow, why did you put that banner on her horse?"

Snow groaned, "I hired you to start a war, not to think. This way, when the princess shows up dead off the coast, Prince Leopold will blame the land of Oz and not us."

"You never said anything about killing her. I just don't think it's right. She's an innocent," Tiny argued, his stomach sinking as he looked upon the young beauty he was unknowingly leading to her demise.

"War has many casualties; many of whom are innocent. If you need to ease your conscience, just remember that I engineered this entire operation, and you will be paid well for your trouble," Snow responded bitterly. Just who did this giant think he was anyway to argue with her?

"I agree with Tiny," Jack piped up. She didn't care much what happened to the unconscious girl, but she didn't like seeing her friend belittled either.

"This is what I get for hiring a drunk who can't hold her liquor and a habitually unemployed giant with a conscience. Do you want me to send you back home, penniless?" Snow got in both of their faces. Her fierce eyes and regal demeanor were frightening enough, let alone the smoke coming out of her ears.

Jack and Tiny looked down, muttering apologies, and set about getting the boat ready to sail as the sun was getting close to setting. They bound the princess's wrists because it was a matter of time before she awoke, and they feared repercussions from Snow if the princess escaped. Night fell, and everything appeared to be going as planned for the group of miscreants.

Something in Jack's gut said they had gotten away too easily, and she kept glancing back toward shore. It was dark, but she thought she saw something out of the corner of her eye. Jack inquired, "Are you sure no one is following us?"

"No one could have followed us. It's inconceivable," Snow scoffed. She noted a change in the princess's breathing and decided to burst her bubble, "We know you're awake, princess, so you may as well stop pretending."

Regina reluctantly opened her eyes, "Where am I?"

"Sailing to the Cliffs of Insanity," Tiny answered helpfully. Nothing in his contract said he couldn't answer a few of the princess's questions, and well, even though it was a paying job, he still felt bad about what they were doing to her.

Regina nearly laughed at the irony. She had lost her sanity the day she lost her hope; she was marrying a prince for crying out loud instead of her true love. Maybe if she intentionally angered these people, they would put her out of her misery. She said aloud, "You do realize that Prince Leopold will find you and have you hanged for this."

"Don't you worry your pretty little head about us," Snow condescended. "He's not even going to bother to come looking for you when he can bed any trollop his heart desires."

"Look there. It's a boat with a black sail. I'm sure of it," Jack pointed behind them, her other hand ready to draw her sword at a moment's notice.

"Are you sure you haven't had anything to drink tonight?" Snow asked, but went over to look anyway. To her surprise, Jack was right about there being a boat, however, the boat was too small to belong to the prince. She said as much, "Probably a fisherman. It can't be for us."

Being the only one with eyes not on the looming boat, Tiny pointed out, "Um, guys? The princess is getting away."

At that moment, Snow and Jack heard a splash. It seemed the young princess had dived into the water while they were preoccupied with arguing. The troublemaker was now treading water while working to remove the bonds on her wrists. Clearly, she hadn't thought through her escape plan, which gave them precious time to catch her. Snow ordered, "Go after her! What are you waiting for?"

Jack had spent much of her life learning how to use a sword and drink huge amounts of ale without falling over. She'd had no need to learn to swim-until now. She responded honestly, "I don't swim."

Tiny also shook his head, "Princess, come back. There's mermaids in the sea."

"Yes. If you come back now, there will be no repercussions, and you won't get such a nice deal from the mermaids. They'll eat a young girl like you for breakfast," Snow boasted more confidence than she had currently, but she wasn't about to show her fear to hired hands and a girl who had apparently never left home before by the way the color drained from her skin at the mention of mermaids.

At that moment, Regina saw a mermaid surfacing near her. She'd heard tales of these vicious creatures, but had never seen one up close. She froze in horror as its tail came up and slapped her across the face. It swam away briefly before returning and colliding with her legs. The waves and the current were pushing her closer to the sailboat she had just escaped.

Reaching the mysterious boat with the black sail was quickly becoming a fantasy. On the mermaid's third pass, she was now within reach of the sailboat & Tiny grabbed her in his arms and whisked her out of its grasp. She clutched onto him out of pure instinct, knowing intellectually that she was simply trading one death for another, and really, what did she have to live for? The only person who cared if she lived or died was her father, and even he was allowing her mother to trade her like a piece of meat for a small fortune. Everyone wanted to use her-her mother, the prince, even these criminals. She made the decision right then and there that she wouldn't let anyone exploit her again. She would control her own destiny.

Snow smirked victoriously at the princess, "I trust there will be no further incidents."

Regina nodded absently as she allowed her hands to be bound once more. She would try again once they reached shore.


End file.
